Bali Christmas

I never cease to marvel at how air travel enables me to descend from the mountains of Nepal to the tropics of SE Asia within hours. Spending a few days in Bangkok I caught up with a Thai friend who introduced me to a vegetarian restaurant a short walk from Khosan. The dishes at Maykaidee were delicious and had I had another day in Bangkok I would have taken one of the classes offered by the restaurant of creative vegetarian cooking with a twist, including papaya salad, spring rolls, pumpkin hummus and tom yum soup (1200baht /pp).

With a brief stopover in Kuala Lumpur I arrived in Bali and headed straight to my favourite town in central Bali. I was last in Ubud around 5 years ago and despite it’s increased celebrity due to Eat, Pray, Love it still holds magic for me. I am staying with friends at their lovely holiday home set amongst lush bamboo, coconut palms and rice fields. Named after types of tea, their Japanese T-house is simple Balinese living at it’s best!

The seasonal rains fall intermittently but are welcomed by me after the dry mountains and for offering an excuse to dart inside and enjoy a vegetarian bite at some of my favourite eateries: Kafe, Soma (and organic too!) and my Dewa Warung. Wishing you all real peace,joy and harmony for the festive season.